Day 4992

We keep setting record high temperatures every single day. I'm beginning to think this heat wave will never end. They say a cold front will arrive next Monday though. For a few days the high temperature will only be in the 90's. We got a late start on our sunrise walk this morning, but very few people were out on the trails. I think the entire city has retreated indoors.

Dawn had lots of energy this morning. She wanted to take a longer walk than usual. She's still coughing a little but seems to be feeling much better. One thing we learned from the x-rays they took at the vet yesterday was that Dawn has hip dysplasia. She doesn't show any signs of discomfort yet, but this is troubling. One of our earlier Dalmatians had hip dysplasia and had to take Rimadyl for years. There is always a danger of liver or kidney damage with this drug.

After breakfast this morning I tried to do a few useful things around the house. I deep watered some trees in the front yard that were starting to look dry. Then I attempted to bleach away some of the water stains in the ceiling. This was more or less a failure. When I got a ladder out so I could inspect the damaged areas more closely I discovered that the sheetrock around the cracks was more of less ruined. It was all powdery and probably spreading a coat of mud over the cracks isn't going to help much. I need to find a tape and bed guy to completely replace the damaged sheetrock. This is going to create so much dust and mess in the house that I'm reluctant to do this yet. Maybe the solution is just to not look up at the ceiling.

I'm beginning to regret that I didn't apply to attend either the Crew 7 or Silent Barker launches. Since there is a Starlink launch as well, there will be three different rockets launching within a few days of each other at the end of the week. It would be a good time to be down at Kennedy Space Center. Oh, well. Snooze, you lose I guess. There will always be other launches later in the year.

I didn't do well at the gym today. I was slower walking around the indoor track and I was definitely off my game shooting baskets. It's weird how much things can change from one day to the next. I have a hard time telling whether it's my body or my mood that affects my performance. I got a good night's sleep last night and wasn't all that tired. I wasn't in a good mood though. Maybe that was it. Since I go to the gym every day now, maybe there's a chance to redeem myself tomorrow.

I don't think I like my new phone as well as my old phone. The touch screen seems way too sensitive. Several times the camera or flashlight apps have opened on their own while the phone was in my pocket. If the flashlight app is running in your pocket the battery can be drained in just a few hours. I guess I could always go back to using the old phone, but this new one is so much faster.

This day was more exciting for Dawn than for me. It was grocery day again. She always gets so excited when Janet returns with groceries. I need to make my own grocery list soon because I always complete the week's grocery runs tomorrow. There will be triple digit temperatures again this weekend, but I'm looking forward to Monday. The prospect of a cold front arriving sounds appealing.

Pinky is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4180

Another rainy day. I split my walk today into several shorter walks to avoid getting wet. I should do this more often. I stayed dry and still managed to get the same number of steps. Dawn's walks have gotten interesting. She's exploring new areas now, but still seems to know exactly how long a mile is. No matter what direction we travel, we always cover the same distance.

Today was probably the most uneventful day this week. I didn't attempt any outdoor projects because it always looked like it was just about to rain. I was expecting a UPS delivery today, but I'm still waiting for the truck. I'm the very last street on the driver's route and if it's been a busy day the driver sometimes doesn't bother to stop. The website can say 'out for delivery" all day long and then eventually I'll get some sort of delivery exception e-mail saying I wasn't home or something. Hey, I've been home all day except for a few short walks. Not that it matters. I have absolutely no control over these things.

Accepting things you can't control is difficult. I'm learning though. I can't control the weather, the state of the world, the stock market, or even Dawn's opinion of me. It's all good though. I learned a long time ago that trying to swim upstream was a wasted effort. Go with the flow. Make the best of things. If life gets you down, take a nap.

The park was pretty empty today. Maybe everyone else thought it was going to rain too. I can't believe how green everything is this year. This is the wettest Spring I can remember and the plants seem to love it.   The park looks great this year. Even our yard is looking pretty good. The grass seed that Janet sprinkled over some bare areas in the back yard is actually starting to grow. This almost never happens. I hope this doesn't mean we are going to have a hot, dry Summer but it probably does. We never get rain in the Summer.

There have been so many launches at Kennedy Space Center this year that it's making me crazy to see all the other launch photographers photos on an almost daily basis. I should be down there with them. I don't think it's going to happen though. NASA seems to have forgotten about me and I'm beginning to think SpaceFlight Magazine has too. It's been oddly silent on both fronts. Oh, well. If it's meant to be, it's meant to be. I have made an effort to stay in the loop. That's all I can do.

The mosquitos are terrible this year. We have tried several remedies, but none of them seem to work. I usually spray the ground cover with a mosquito repellent, but it has been so wet lately that the rain would just wash the repellent away. Our latest effort is a little burner that look a bit like an incense burner. The pellets that make the smoke that is supposed to drive the mosquitos away won't stay lit though. I got bit by mosquitos trying to fix the thing this morning.

I need to go to Home Depot tomorrow and look for a saw blade that will actually cut through the dead Photinia trees. I also need to buy some more duct tape. Duct tape is my solution for everything these days. I need to get groceries tomorrow as well. Hopefully I can run these errands without getting caught in the rain

The UPS driver actually did deliver my package a few minutes ago. He was very late and probably very tired as well. I don't think this would be a job I would like at all.

Daisy is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 4162

There's a new dog up at the Dalmatian kennel. Riggs, our new boy, appears quite young and still acts like a puppy. Looks can be deceiving though. Some Dalmatians act like a puppy their entire life. Riggs was definitely a bundle of energy, but he will be a fun companion for some lucky person. Two of the four Dalmatians currently at the kennel already have homes, but their new owners haven't picked them up yet. This is not unusual, since many of the rescue dogs are adopted out of state and transportation arrangements can be complicated. I'm never sure about adoption details. Janet and I just play with the dogs and work on socializing them.

We tried to walk Dawn before we left for the kennel, but she wasn't having any part of it. Although it wasn't raining, the ground was still wet and that was enough to convince Dawn that an afternoon of sitting on the bed was a better alternative. According to the weather forecast we're going to have rain all week. Today wasn't as bad as yesterday, but we still got a lot of rain. The ground is soggy and the water levels at the lake are quite high. 

I thought I might have to curtail my walk today, but it was still dry when we returned from visiting the Dalmatians. The sky looked dark but I thought I could keep checking the weather radar like I did yesterday. This worked out pretty well. Actually, the skies cleared a bit as I was walking and I even saw a few patches of blue on my way home. I wonder where yesterday's energy went though. Today I felt tired and I walked at a much slower pace. My feet hurt again too. It's a mystery why there is no consistency to my foot pain. I'll ask my doctor about this tomorrow at my physical exam, but I don't really expect an answer.

One of our neighbors had tree trimmers out today, so I asked them if they could give me an estimate for removing the damaged Oak tree in our back yard. This crew seemed more knowledgable and professional than some I've seen in the neighborhood, so I may hire them. I'm in no hurry though. The first thing the tree service guy told me was that our tree was very large and was located next to a power line. It would be a multi-day job to remove the tree. If you've ever had a tree removed, this translates into "very expensive." We'll see what the estimate is. I'm sure it will cost more than my recent trip to McDonald Observatory.

I tried to process another Milky Way photo today, but I must have done something wrong. The edited photo turned out to be worse than the camera original. I think I must have been in a hurry and skipped a few steps. I was trying to complete the processing after breakfast before Janet and I left to visit the rescue Dalmatians. Getting these photos ready for their Instagram moment is a long and tedious process. I shouldn't even bother unless I have a lot of free time.

An Air Force launch that I'd been invited to attend got scrubbed today. This was a reminder that a trip to Kennedy Space Center is just as uncertain as a trip to McDonald Observatory. There are so many things that can go wrong with a launch. Today's mission wasn't scrubbed because of weather. There was a problem fueling the rocket's second stage instead. I think they are going to try again tomorrow. I'm not even going to think about making a trip to the East Coast until the current gas shortage is over. The trip would probably be a nightmare with a shortage of rental cars and no gas available.

Maybe I'll watch the ULA livestream of the launch tomorrow. I have a feeling that I'll still be at the doctor though. I wish I could have gotten an earlier appointment. I have to fast for these semi-annual physical exams and I won't be able to have any breakfast. Breakfast is such an important part of my daily routine that I'm not looking forward to this. I hope the doctor can explain why I've been feeling so tired lately. He'll probably just tell me that I haven't been getting enough sleep.

Susie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3934

Our long family walks may be over. Dawn still enjoys her morning walks. She just doesn't feel like going very far. This morning we turned around at about the same point we did yesterday. I'm glad Dawn knows how to tell us when she has reached her limit. At least she's able to get some exercise this way. Other than not having quite as much energy, she seems to be doing fine. There is no fever and as far as we can tell, no signs of discomfort. Dawn's appetite is better than ever, but a lot of that is because of the Prednisone. I'll be glad when she has finished her meds and we can see if we've made any real progress.

The Delta IV Heavy isn't making any progress at all. I stayed up late and watched the launch on my computer last night. It didn't happen. For the second time in less than a month the launch was scrubbed in the final seconds of the count. Considering that this rocket was originally supposed to launch back in June, it has had an extraordinary streak of bad luck. Articles are starting to be written now about how the launch pad is so old that it is falling into disrepair. I doubt that ULA will be spending a lot of money to upgrade things though since there are only two launches left at Cape Canaveral before the rocket is officially retired. All this kind of makes you realize how far ahead of everyone else Space X is now.

The weather was perfect for making roof repairs or mowing the grass, but I couldn't get motivated to do anything. This year has just sucked the energy out of me. Some days I don't even feel like taking a shower.   I still take long walks where I often daydream about better times. I count the ducks and pelicans and still try to identify mystery trees. I got over 20,000 steps today. Not bad for a weekday without a trip to the gym.

When I got back from my long walk, Janet thought Dawn might like a short afternoon walk, so I just continued walking. We took Dawn down to the shoreline where there were lots of things to smell. We didn't go far, but Dawn really seemed to enjoy herself. That's our goal now. We just want to make Dawn's days as enjoyable as we can, since we don't really know how long she has left.

Janet said her doctor is taking part in a vaccine clinical trial. I don't think I'd have the nerve to do this. I assume that at some point the participants will be told whether that got the vaccine or a placebo. What if you got the vaccine but it wasn't very good? Could you still take another type of vaccine later? It still seems so weird to me that are moving full speed ahead without a lot of knowledge. Why is it considered unsafe to eat in a restaurant when you can fly on a crowded plane? Isn't anybody even curious whey so few people are getting the virus in Africa? Why are infections rising again in Europe? Aren't these the guys who were supposed to be doing everything right? Statistics are constantly being revised and a lot of them were never correct in the first place. It's all very frustrating.

All I really want is the ability to travel freely again without worrying about catching a deadly disease from a stranger or finding myself in the middle of a riot in a strange city on the way back to my hotel. It's an unsettling dystopian world we live in now. Maybe all those zombie movies were just getting us ready for what's to come.

Tori is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3933

They've raised the rent on my storage warehouse again. These annual increases are so predictasble and relentless that it's infuriating. It's almost like they are begging you to move to a different location. I've already done this once, but it's a lot of trouble. I could probably save a lot of money by moving back to my old warehouse as a new customer. Like I said, it's a lot of trouble though. I wish I could just wave a magic wand and make some of this stuff go away. 

I don't want to have a yard sale because I hate dealing with strangers. I don't want to sell on eBay because a lot of the stuff is heavy and difficult to ship. I did make an effort two or three years ago to sell a few things. I was successful at selling most of the guitars. I repaired some of my vintage synthesizers, but there was no market for them. After three years about half of my train collection has sold. The old computers are basically worthless, but it's a lot of trouble to take them all apart and remove the hard drives. Stuff just accumulates and then you forget what it is or why you bought it in the first place. I've still got stuff from my Dad's estate in the warehouse. There are probably a few things from my grandparent's estate. There's a lesson in this somewhere, but I didn't learn it soon enough. The millennials who spend their money on experiences instead of stuff are probably the smart ones.

Dawn walks a little further every day. We're still going very short distances though. I'm not sure she'll ever get back to where she was before. We're not going to push her. When Dawn starts to slow down or look tired, we immediately turn around and go home. Dawn does seem to be improving. Tomorrow we start gradually reducing her Prednisone dose. The real test will come when she has finished all her meds.

The temperature was still nice when we took our short morning walk with Dawn, but warmer weather has definitely returned. It was actually pretty hot when I took my longer afternoon walk. I wish the weather was more predictable, but I guess I wish everything was more predictable. When I was walking this afternoon I saw the mother Muscovy duck again. There were only three ducklings with her this time. Where did the other three go? Nature can be pretty cruel. I'm not sure I even want to know what happened to the ducklings.

It looks like the Delta IV Heavy launch is finally going to happen tonight. The weather looks good and the countdown is going smoothly. I'd still like to see one of these giant rockets before they are retired and become obsolete. These days they are only used to launch billion dollar school bus sized spy satellites for the CIA. Nobody really knows what these satellites do, but watching them head into orbit is pretty impressive. I'll try to stay awake tonight and watch tonight's launch on my computer. The next time one of these monsters launches from Cape Canaveral sometime in 2022, I hope I can see it in person.

As I approach 4000 days on my blog quest, I'm really starting to wonder if it's worth the effort to go any further. I'm running out of things to say. A lot of days are so uneventful that I wonder why anyone reads this at all. Maybe I'll get a second wind and start doing interesting things again when Covid finally dies out and life returns to normal. Actually I don't even care if life returns to normal. I'd just like to travel normally again.

Thelma is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3932

Dawn must wonder about us sometimes. When we were walking this morning she abruptly sat down and then started eratically kicking with one of her rear legs. We thought she was having another seizure and slowly and carefully guided her back home. When we were back at the house we discovered she had a burr stuck in one of her paw pads. As soon as we removed the burr, everything was fine. I don't know why I didn't think to look at Dawn's paws immediately. Dot and Dash were always getting burrs and thorns stuck in their paws. They would also step on bees and get stung. We were so worried about seizures that we failed to recognize the obvious. Sorry Dawn. We're old and do the best we can.

Our beautiful fall weather continues. Dawn isn't walking far these days, but I've returned to taking long walks by myself. Today I took a camera with me and took pictures of birds. There are at least ten American White Pelicans at the lake now along with quite a few Great Blue Herons and Great Egrets. I found the missing Muscovy Ducks as well. I don't even like birds that much, but they are much easier to find and photograph than the other critters that inhabit the park. We have bobcats, river otters, foxes, mink,   coyotes and more but it's rare to see some of these guys. A lot of the animals hide when you have a dog with you.

The Delta IV Heavy launch got scrubbed again. They must be trying to set a record for canceled launches. I guess they're going to try again tomorrow. I'm so glad I didn't try to attend this launch. The weather has been terrible and the rocket has had one problem after another. I would like to see this rocket before it is officially retired but I probably will have to wait until 2022. The way things are going, I might have to wait until 2022 to do much of anything.

Our furnace came on for the first time last night. Every Winter I'm always a little apprehensive about whether the furnace will start. This year it did just fine. Since it's Texas, the air conditioner also came on later in the day. There was something for everyone today. I was even able to leave the windows open for a while today. I love Fall weather. It just doesn't last long enough.

I didn't watch tonight's debate. Why bother. When I turn on the television while I'm eating breakfast tomorrow, that's all I'll hear about. I'm already hearing about it on Facebook. Over and over again. I doubt that either man did themselves any favors. This is what you get when you nominate two old fools for president. I wouldn't be surprised if Kanye West gained a few votes tonight. 

I hope our nice weather continues. I really need to use this time to complete my repairs on the roof. Maybe tomorrow. There are other chores around the house that need attention as well. It's just hard to get motivated. It's a lot easier to take long walks and snap a few pictures of birds.

Sweet Pea is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3931

What a beautiful day. A cold front arrived last night and brought some cool dry air and clear skies with it. My allergies were much better today. Dawn felt better as well. Today we completed a short loop that I used to take with Dot and Dash when they were getting older. It's still way too early to draw any conclusions about Dawn's condition. We'll need to wait until she's finished with the Prednisone she's curently taking to reduce inflamation. So far, she hasn't had any further seizures. This is a good sign. If this continues when she's completed all her meds, it's an even better sign.

Dawn was feeling normal enough today that we felt it was safe to leave her for a few hours while we visited Charlie up at the kennel. Poor Charlie. Clyde found his forever home so quickly that Charlie is once again the only Dalmatian at the kennel. Charlie has adjusted well to kennel life, but he deserves a forever home just like the other dogs. Charlie was never a calm dog, but he's much more relaxed with us now. Once he has worked off his pent up energy, he will even sit with us and let us pet him. Charlie always has something in his mouth. He is constantly chewing.

I did a lot of walking today. After we returned from the kennel, I took a four mile walk by myself. Even during the warmest part of the day, the temperature never got above the mid 70's. It was nice to be able to walk without being drenched in sweat with a dripping nose. Weather fronts are kind of amazing. It felt like all of yesterday's air was completely replaced by a new supply of clean, fresh air without all the pollen that has been bothering me for weeks. The weather was so cool and nice that we took Dawn on another short walk just before supper. We took her on a new route where there were lots of things to smell and she loved it.

The Delta IV Heavy launch got postponed again. I've lost count of how many times this mission has been scrubbed. This particular rocket doesn't fly very often and maybe that is part of the problem. There have been lots of small mechanical problems with the equipment at the pad. Today's problem had nothing to do with the rocket though. There were thunderstorms in the area and several lightning strikes hit very near the pad. The weather must have been pretty bad because two different launches got scrubbed in a single day. I only mention all this because it makes my decision to skip the launch and stay here in Dallas seem better every day. I'm always pleased when doing nothing turns out to be the wise choice.

I need to take a telescope outside and look at Mars as it is nearing opposition. For a short time it will be even brighter than Jupiter as it makes it's closest approach to Earth on October 13. I've been watching Mars in the morning sky all Summer when we took out pre-dawn walks. Now the planet is in the evening sky and is much brighter. I doubt that I'll be able to see much detail with my small telescope but these close approaches only occur every two years. Just like looking for the comet a few months ago, it would be silly to miss the opportunity.

I have no idea what I'll be doing tomorrow, but you probably already knew that. I won't be going to Florida but I will check the ULA website to see if the Delta IV Heavy makes it off the ground on its next attempt tomorrow evening. Like the Mars opposition, there won't be another Delta IV Heavy launch until two years from now. Maybe by then Covid will just be a bad memory and we can all travel freely again. 

Spanky is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3930

Dawn may have brain damage, but I still think she's a very smart dog. When we walk in the morning, she tells us exactly how far she wants to go. When she's decided she's gone far enough, she just sits down. I'll ask her if she's ready to go home and she'll immediately get up, turn around and head for the house. She did this yesterday and she did the same thing today. We went about 400 yards further today, so maybe she's feeling a little better.

The meds appear to be working. Dawn's temperature is back to normal now and she is eating normally again. She is still quiet and doesn't have a lot of energy. I'm almost certain that even though the fever is gone she still isn't feeling normally. The meds probably sedate her a bit and whatever caused the problem in the first place is still there. I've been reading a lot about brain lesions and if this is the problem it would explain a lot. There have always been a lot of little things that just didn't make sense about Dawn's behavior. I'm mostly just thinking about what happens in a human brain, but any sort of physical abnormality can cause a lot of changes. I'm still hoping that her problems are minor and that life will return to normal in a few weeks. For the moment, all we can do is wait and see.

Dawn's walks are so short now that I've returned to taking long walks by myself to get my exercise. Today I kept thinking that I really should just return to the gym. Janet has been going to her gym for over a month and has had no problems. My seasonal allergies have returned with a vengeance and at some point a continual runny nose and itchy eyes is going to seem a lot worse than the threat of Covid. My allergies were especially bad today. My the time I returned home I was miserable. I used up all the tissues I took with me before I'd even finished my first mile.

It's too bad I have this fear of catching the virus on a plane. The multiple delays that have taken place with the Delta IV Heavy have pushed three launches very close together. If there aren't further delays caused by weather, all three rockets may launch within hours of each other. This is quite rare. Delays aren't rare at all however, so everything could change again tomorrow. If all three launches do end up taking place together it would tempt me again to make the trip to Florida. A lot would depend on how Dawn was feeling once her meds wear off. Flying with seasonal allergies is probably not a great idea either. I might get kicked off the plane for sneezing a lot.

I read an ad about running shoes today that sounded just about perfect for my difficult to fit feet. I was just about ready to go out and buy a pair until I started reading the online reviews. Customers generally weren't happy. I should have learned by now not to believe advertising. I'm an advertising writer. I've spent decades perfecting the art of making things seem better than they actually are. Sadly, I'm still looking for the perfect shoe. The Nike Air Max shoes I bought recently are already starting to wear out and my feet still hurt after long walks.

This weekend certainly wasn't what I expected. A sudden illness can change everything. Hopefully Dawn will continue to improve. We knew that she wasn't a young dog when we adopted her, but she definitely deserves a few more happy, pain free years. I guess we all do.

Sophie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3929

Dawn was very subdued today, but is feeling much better than yesterday. Her temperature is down and she is starting to eat again. We took a very short walk just to the end of the street and back because we didn't want to push our luck. Ths fact that the medication she's taking appears to be working indicates that she probably did have a seizure. Hopefully, Dawn's condition will continue to improve and she will remain stable after she has finished her meds. Seizures are strange and unpredictable. Dawn could have another seizure tomorrow or several years could go by before we experience something like this again. 

I'm still not sure that Dawn even had a seizure, but it is the most logical explanation for her condition. We've had a lot of experience with seizure dogs and Dawn didn't react the same way that Dot and Dash did when they had seizures. On the other hand, she was treated as if she'd had a seizure resulting from some type of brain lesion and the treatment seems to be working. We probably won't learn a lot more unless we proceed with MRI or CT scans. Sometimes this advanced imaging doesn't even tell you anything definitive. When we began to suspect that Dot was having vestibular seizures we made sure that she had an MRI. All we learned for sure was that dogs have very tiny brains. I thought that Dot's brain would have taken up a lot more space in her skull.

When a vet says your pet may have brain lesions, I think they are just trying to be nice and avoid saying the word tumor. A brain lesion and a brain tumor are basically the same thing. Pretty soon you are talking about cancer and the surgery, radiation and chemotherapy options that accompany it. We need to figure out what is going on, but I am in no rush to do anything. The first step is to see if Dawn remains stable after she has finished her meds.

I took my walk today without Dawn. I've done a lot of walking over the years and walking with a dog is always more enjoyable. You never really question why you are walking, because it is usually obvious that the dog enjoys the walk. When you start to experience what the dog is experiencing, you become much more aware of your surroundings. When I am walking by myself, it is usually just an effort to stay in shape. When I am walking with dogs, it is often more about sharing the dog's enjoyment.

The launch I was thinking of attending in Florida has already been postponed two more times. It is a good thing I never made the trip. Even if there were no Covid restrictions and Dawn wasn't sick, I would still just be sitting in a hotel room wondering if it was worth the effort to extend my trip a few more days. After the latest delay was announced this morning, there is still no firm launch date. Maybe I'd better wait for a more reliable rocket before I make my next trip to Florida.

I did my grocery shopping today and was able to find almost everything on my list. I usually get the same things week after week and I've noticed that prices have really gone up since the pandemic started. The price increases haven't been dramatic, but they have been steady. Is this just the normal supply and demand equation at work, or are manufacturers trying to see what they can get aways with? It really doesn't seem that prices should have gone up than much since last March, but what do I know.

I went to get take-out from our favorite Chinese restaurant this evening and the place was full. I was surprised. I guess they have ended restaurant restrictions in Texas. It's strange. When you turn on the TV you'd think we're all headed for disaster. When you just walk around town, you'd think that the pandemic was over. Time will tell, I guess.

Suki is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3923

What a beautiful Fall day. The temperature was in the mid-60's when we went walking this morning. The smoke disappeared overnight and the sky was clear and blue. There was a nice breeze and my allergies weren't bothering me at all. A lot more trees are starting to turn and we noticed that two more White Pelicans have arrived at the lake. We counted five of the birds today.

We also found the lost female Muscovy Duck this morning. Janet and I were convinced that the duck was dead since we haven't seen her in over a month. She is very much alive with six brand new baby ducklings. The ducklings explained a lot. The mom probably just found a safe place to make a nest and it's just now that the ducklings are getting old enough to rejoin all the other ducks. The reappearance of the female duck probably explains why the two male Muscovy Ducks moved to a different section of the lake. All three were together again today. It made me feel good to see the three ducks reunited. Muscovy Ducks are ugly, but we've become attached to them.

After our regular walk this morning we took Dawn to a different park in the afternoon to continue our efforts to get her used to riding in the car. She's still nervous about car rides, but she always enjoys the destination. She got a special treat today because we stopped for ice cream on the way home. I've never met a dog yet who didn't love ice cream.

I was going to make roof repairs today but when Janet suggested taking Dawn on a car ride that seemed like a much better idea. I don't know if there would have been time to apply the silicon coating anyway. It really needs 48 hours to dry completely and it's going to rain again tomorrow. It's looks like there is rain in the forecast for several days. It must have something to do with the next hurricane headed for the Texas coast. We are pretty safe from the hurricanes themselves, but we often get rain from the outer rain bands.

I joined my very first Zoom meeting today. I can see now why the software is popular. It was easy to use and the whole experience was more enjoyable than I thought it would be. Maybe I won't be so reluctant to join these things in the future. It took less than an hour out of my day and much to my surprise I enjoyed talking to these people again.

It appears that there is going to be a rocket launch next Saturday. Now I just need to decide whether I'm going or not. One of my Florida friends said that if I have confirmed press clearance I ought to go. He said that the Covid rules change frequently and nobody with credentials really knows if they are going to get clearance again. We'll see. I'll try calling the Air Force again tomorrow. I suspect that the launch will get postponed again anyway. There are a lot of hurricanes in the Atlantic right now.

There might be a new Dalmatian at the kennel tomorrow. I know that we have a new dog in the program now, but he might still be at the vet getting his initial exams. I'll take my camera just in case. Hopefully, we'll be able to take our walk with Dawn in the morning before the rain arrives. 

Rosie is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3917

Yay. I finally heard from my editor at Sky and Telescope today. It looks like my article about McDonald Observatory is going to be published in the February 2021 issue. This seems like a long time to wait considering that this whole process started well over a year ago, but that's how publishing works. It took a long time for my article about Michoud Assembly Facility and the Artemis program to get published as well. Now that I know the magazine hasn't forgotten about me, I'd guess I'd better learn to just be patient and wait.

We went up to the kennel to visit Charlie today. He's the only Dalmatian left at the place. Charlie is always glad to see us. I know the kennel staff loves him, but sometimes it feels like we're the only friends he has. He always seems to get overlooked when potential adopters come looking for a pet. Admittedly, Charlie has a few problems, but he's a great dog. He's going to find his forever home one of these days. Sometimes it just takes a little longer.

The weather was still nice today. We got off to a late start on our morning walk, but it didn't seem to matter. There was a chill in the air and it felt like Fall had arrived. I even noticed that a few trees are starting to turn this morning. The upper level winds must have changed because the sky looked blue again. I didn't see any smoke in the air. Dallas is a good place to be right now. There are no hurricanes, no wildfires, and temperatures couldn't be better. I think our two weeks of Fall have finally arrived.

It looks like the Delta IV Heavy mission I've been waiting to see is back on schedule again.. I think it's going to launch within the next couple of weeks. I've got to decide whether it's worth going down to Florida for this. Even though I've got Air Force credentials now, the Space Center is still fairly restricted. You have to stay in your own car and follow an Air Force vehicle to the designated photography location. There are no group activities or interview opportunities and you definitely can't wander around the base on your own. I'm still thinking about this one. If all I can do is stand next to my car and take a picture, I'm not sure there's much of a story. Unless I can convince the magazine that an article about Covid restrictions at Cape Canaveral might be interesting, I have a feeling that I'll pass on this launch.

Janet found some puppy pictures of Dawn on the Internet. I don't know how she managed to find these, but it's definitely Dawn. All the spots match perfectly. From the date on the picture, we think Dawn might be one year older than we previously thought. That would make her seven years old instead of six. I've always thought that Dawn was even older than this. She just acts like an older dog.

Janet wants to get an early start tomorrow, so it looks like we'll be walking in the dark again. Every time I look up at the sky on these early walks, I'm reminded about how much better things look out at McDonald Observatory. I miss the dark skies and am ready to go back. I wonder if things will be back to normal by next March? I hope so. What a long strange year it's been

Nicholas is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 3904

I received a letter from the Air Force today telling me that the credentialing process is complete and I have been approved for press access to Cape Canaveral. It turns out that I have actually been approved since mid-June. I just never received the approval e-mail. All's well that ends well I guess. If I knew I was approved earlier, I would probably have headed down to Florida for the much delayed Delta IV Heavy launch and had to return with nothing to show for my efforts. That launch has been delayed three times and still hasn't been rescheduled. The letter I got today was kind of vague. I still need to find out exactly how all this works.

Apparently I am approved to cover launches that take place at Cape Canaveral but not at Kennedy Space Center. These are two separate entities. There are lots of interesting military launches, so I'm good with this. I'll probably be headed back to Florida as soon as I feel safe getting on an airplane again. Lord knows how long that will take.

We walked early today because we thought it was going to rain. It was even darker than usual because of the heavy cloud cover. Walking at night under a clear sky seems kind of peaceful. Under heavy clouds it is kind of spooky. Eventually the sky lightened and we all relaxed a bit. We didn't get wet either. Eventually it did rain but it took most of the day for the storm to arrive. It's still raining right now, but it doesn't seem like the kind of storm that would cause a power outage. Maybe I'm being over confident.

Not a lot happened today. It seemed like I spent most of the day waiting for rain. I got a little wet on my afternoon walk, but that wasn't the main event. The heavy rain didn't start until this evening. At least both pumps seem to be working. I wonder how long this bad weather is going to last? According to the weather app on my phone it's going to be raining from now through Saturday.

I'm glad I'm back in touch with the Air Force. One of their media relations officers is going to call me tomorrow and fill me in on the details. Now I can start planning something again. I need to select a launch that would be interesting for the magazine to cover. I actually hope this takes a while. It will give me something to do.

Once again, I'm not sure what I'll be doing tomorrow. Somehow my days seem to go directly from breakfast to dinner with very little in between. Dawn seemed nervous around me again today. This happens periodically and usually doesn't last very long. Neither Janet or I can figure out what triggers this behavior. It's kind of sad though. She's such a sweet dog and there is no reason she should feel uncomfortable.

Can you believe it's September already? This has truly been a wasted year.

Spot is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day

Day 3901

Another hot summer day. It got up to 106 degrees this afternoon. This is one reason why we got a really early start this morning. I don't think Dawn likes the idea of walking so early, but we are doing it for her. These pre-dawn walks are the only way to beat the heat.

Even though the skies were clear for most of the day, we've under another thunderstorm watch now. It's hard to keep up with Texas weather. It looks like the storm is starting to dissipate, but I'm going to continue to watch the weather radar until the fast moving front passes over us. I hate the thought of losing power in the summer. It doesn't take long for the house to become impossibly hot and humid.

I managed to find most of the items on my grocery list this morning. Grocery shopping has become like a scavenger hunt. You never know what you are going to find on the shelves.  There seems to be plenty of bottled water and toilet paper now. It's common everyday items that seem to have disappeared. I managed to find peaches by going to a different store, but I still can't find my favorite cheese.

I forgot to update my credit card information on the shopping app I always use to avoid the checkout line and it wouldn't process my transaction. I couldn't seem to enter new information at the store, so I had to start over and go through the checkout line after all. I finally figured out how to empty my shopping cart in the app so I wouldn't be charged twice, but it took a while. Technology is always easy until it isn't. I think I'm better at figuring these things out when I'm at home.

The little red light we clip on Dawn's collar wouldn't work this morning. I thought the batteries might be dead, but the light seemed to work perfectly later this morning when the sun was up and we were back home. It's easy to find a bargain these days, but nothing seems well made anymore. We got some solar powered patio lights for the back yard a few months ago and some of the lights are already starting to fail. I suspect this is because we got the lights at the Dollar Store. What can you expect from a solar powered light that costs a dollar?

The launch I'd been wanting to attend all summer got aborted right when the count reached zero early this morning. Just as the rocket started to fire, everything shut down. Now the launch is delayed at least another week while ULA tried to determine what the problem was. If I had traveled to Florida, I would have incurred three extra days of hotel bills and then had to return to Dallas anyway without seeing anything. I think someone is trying to tell me to just lay low for a while. Travel is complicated and filled with uncertainties. Walking your dog every morning is pretty simple.

I hear thunder but it still hasn't rained yet. As much as I hate the idea of rain, maybe it would cool things down a bit. The temperature is still hovering around 100 degrees.

Duke is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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